Experience in hospital after birth

[CMRC17]

I have a c section planned for next week and something that’s playing on my mind is what the experience in the hospital for the night will be like?
I feel a bit anxious about it particularly considering my partner will need to go home at 8pm as they don’t let partners stay on the ward.
I’d love to hear peoples experiences on their nights in hospital after giving birth, just on a normal basis provided everything with the birth goes well?
as I’m having a c section I’m not sure whether I should expected to feel a bit drowsy / not really with it afterwards? Do people find they are able to sleep much? I imagine I will want to stay awake for fear of anything happening to the baby!
I also wondered about using the bathroom, if they take the catheter out on the day and I need to go would I take my baby with me? Do people find they wanted to be up and moving around the ward or were you pretty happy lying in bed?

Luckily partners were allowed to stay but that’s probably as we had zero support/care/short staffed from them.

I remember asking for support for a wash as there was blood everywhere and I had been in labour for four days previously. Now looking back I shouldn’t have bled as much to keep bleeding through the pads/clothes/sheets. No wonder I kept passing out every time I moved.

The health care assistant seemed very confused but understanding. She gave DH a sick bowl and some paper towels. I wish I had packed flannel and more towels. I also forgot to pack blankets for DD - it was the middle of summer.

Do people find they are able to sleep much?

Yes because I was on oramorph and then codeine for the pain. Sleeping was no problem

I imagine I will want to stay awake for fear of anything happening to the baby!

If everything goes well baby will be in cot beside you and will wake you. Midwives are in and out checking too.

I also wondered about using the bathroom, if they take the catheter out on the day and I need to go would I take my baby with me?

Catheter comes out next morning and mw will help you to get to the shower / toilet the first time. No baby stays in the cot.

Do people find they wanted to be up and moving around the ward or were you pretty happy lying in bed?

I was in a lot of pain and didn't want to move at all.

Prepare to lie there half the night fantasising about defenestrating the snoring woman in the next bed ...

Emergency c section. Husband sent home after settled on ward about 11pm. On morphine drip and catheter as evening birth. Zero help with baby. Had to pick baby up to feed from cot myself despite major surgery and on morphine drip.

This was my experience

No help at all getting to toilet or shower. If. Wanted to eat or drink breakfast had to wheel baby in cot to opposite end of post natal until I could not so no food or drink til my husband allowed on ward.

You're lucky he was allowed on the ward. I had mine during covid times and it was so traumatic

Mine was long before Covid but visiting times were strictly adhered to. DD was born at 6:30am, we were on the ward around 8am and DH was told he had to leave until 10am visiting. I wasn’t allowed out of bed till 7pm.

I didn't have a c section but after a long labour I had to have rotational forceps (baby was back to back). They weren't confident that they'd be able to get her out with forceps though so I was prepped for c section and therefore had a spinal block. She was born at 1.30pm and they didn't take my catheter out till about 6am the next morning so there was no pressure to be up and about immediately. DH was able to stay all afternoon and evening which meant I could get some rest while he cooed over her! Overnight DD woke a few times but mostly just sleepy murmurs than actually needing picked up and a pat on the tummy usually settled her. My nurse was lovely and I didn't feel the ward seemed too stretched but the atmosphere will depend on staffing and the babies around you (including your own) I suppose! Looking back I was in a bubble mostly because I was so exhausted. Hopefully with yours being an elective, you'll be well rested and able to cope well afterwards. All the best for baby's arrival ❤️

Really hot, blue curtains, constant bing bongs of the call button, snoring, faint smell of toilets, can't go home unless you wee in a cardboard bowl, sweaty, loud women on phones, Glad to be home.

Don't expect it to be a nice experience. You shouldn't feel drowsy, but legs will be numb, so you will have a catheter in all night. Buzz whenever you need anything or need help with the baby, don't sit there suffering in the middle of the night. Drink loads of water, take lots of snacks. I slept for 1 hour the whole night, buzzers constantly going off, babies crying, people walking about, I could hear a pipe banging for about 2 hours! I got up as soon as catheter out and walked about and they let me go home that afternoon luckily.

I think it depends on so many factors.

I had my catheter out within 2hrs and was fine to look after DS. I was mobile and able, stayed one night and then went home. They came if I buzzed for anything, were lovely and friendly, if extraordinarily busy. V different with DD but was a different ward. Still, was well able to care for DD and up and about a couple of hours post surgery.

The main issues for me were the noise. Too many people to sleep well. And the bloody heat. OMG. I was drinking litres of water and still dehydrated. It was nearly 40 degrees on the ward and we weren't allowed to open the windows.

Being honest, it was awful. I had an emergency section. My baby was taken straight to special care, I wasn’t able to see her for 10 hours. I was stuck on the ward with 5 other women who all had their babies with them, and mine was a ward away. I cried all night every night. A few nosy (pervert) partners and visitors looking through the curtains whenever they got a chance. Woman having rows on speakerphone at 4am with god knows who.

I was there for 5 nights. Eventually I got my own room, only because it was a conveyor belt of women staying one night and leaving, whereas I was stuck there. This was all only five weeks ago and the experience still haunts me now. Some of the other women were deeply unpleasant- loud, swearing, arguing, and just generally very disrespectful and disruptive. As much as I was upset that my partner couldn’t stay, I was so glad that none of their partners could stay either.

Take your own pillow. Take some ear plugs. Make sure someone can bring you food and snacks because the hospital food is utter dog shit.

Where abouts will you be delivering? There might be women who have delivered in that trust etc that could give a good insight

Id say make sure you have the number of a pizza delivery place, i hadn't eaten all day and by the time i got ip to the wards id apparently missed dinner, if my husband hadnt have been there id have starved and no one cares.

I had a 5 day stay and DD1 was in NICU for 10 days. I was given a private room free of charge because we were separated. I think some trusts will let you pay for one if noone else is using it. With my eldest it was during covid and most of the private rooms were being used by covid + patients.

I had a vaginal birth but was in a lot of pain and in hospital for a few days. No men allowed on the ward at night and my baby wouldn't sleep. She slept when we got home, but neither of us slept for days on the ward because it's so loud. Some midwives are more supportive than others.

There were women on my ward who had their babies in NICU. It must've been hard on them to be surrounded by babies.

It absolutely must have been. One night i was woken up by the baby crying in the next room, and i thought it was my baby. I was really disorientated and asking the midwife where my baby was. I cant imagine how it must be having to be in the same ward as well.

I’m absolutely dreading having to stay on the ward. Really hope for a birth early morning go home that day. But noise cancelling headphones are top of my packing list

Probably depends on the hospital but you can book them a few weeks beforehand at ours, they’ll keep them available for you unless there are like 6 emergencies where women really need privacy and then you’ll be bumped out onto the ward. But unlikely. And obviously you ‘book’ it but can’t really fully book it as you don’t tend to know what date you’ll be in there. But not many women book them so you usually get one if you’ve booked one.

I had an emergency c-section in 2021, stayed in for two nights and had great aftercare compared to most people on here. DH was allowed to stay until 10pm on the first night then had to go home until 10am the next day. Midwives were incredibly kind, and attentive. They answered call bells as soon as they could and helped with lifting and changing baby overnight on the first night as I couldn't move because of the spinal block. I didn't feel like I could ask for help with that kind of stuff on the second night and it was really difficult to manage lifting DD and putting her back down again but I managed, I got the impression they would have helped if I'd asked though. I also can't remember being woken up excessively, mostly woke up to feed DD rather than because of noisy babies/being woken by midwives. The ward was very warm but I was luckily near a window which was open with a breeze coming in. I also quite enjoyed the food, not nearly as bad as people had made out to me.

I didn’t have a section but was in the extra care ward. I found the nights fine. The days were a bit annoying with some loud partners visiting, but I found the other mums helpful, eg would keep an eye on baby while you went to the loo, etc. We also had a fabulous breastfeeding lady who literally worked all day supporting women to breastfeed; getting them free pumps if their baby was in NICU; helping them collect and store colostrum; and just being genuinely nice and helpful. She was a star ⭐️

This except in my local hospital the curtains have a custom print of various local landmarks rendered in sludgy pastels.